Jinxed
by Gemini11
Summary: Piper's luck seems to be getting worse, she's kidnapped and then escapes her cell, but always finds herself back at the door that leads to her cell. Cole arrives to help her find a way out, but the kidnapper's lair is a confusing maze.


"Look, don't talk to me like I'm a child! I know what I'm doing!" She snapped as she slammed the book down on the kitchen table and flung back the cover.  
  
"Do you?" Her sister asked, grabbing her by the wrist. "Cause quite frankly, I think you're being impulsive! You haven't even thought this through, Phoebe! What if something worse happens?"  
  
"Prue, give me a break!" Phoebe sighed angrily. "Piper is in trouble and unless we do something now, then she might not come home alive! I would rather not find her body parts shipped to us via Fed-Ex!"  
  
"She won't be, Phoebe, just calm down and think this through!"  
  
Phoebe shoved herself away from the table and went out the back door. She came back with a box and opened it for Prue. "Look! This was our innocent, Prue! This is what happens when we fail!" Phoebe screamed at her sister, tears flooding her eyes.  
  
Inside the box was a severed head that Leo had promised he would deal with. After Piper had been captured, their priorities had changed. Prue looked away, and Phoebe thrust the box into her arms.  
  
"I don't want my sister to end up like that!" Phoebe sobbed.  
  
Prue closed the box and put it back outside. Phoebe was leaning against the table when she came back, sobs wracking her body. Prue wiped her own eyes dry. She had to be strong for Phoebe…and for Piper. She walked over and pulled her baby sister into a strong embrace.  
  
"I know you're scared, honey." Prue said gently. "I'm scared too, but if we go off half cocked without knowing what we're up against then we might not be able to save Piper, or ourselves. We might get ourselves killed." Prue slowly pulled away and cupped Phoebe's face in her hands. "We'll save Piper. I promise. But we have to know what we're dealing with first."  
  
"What if we're not on time?" Phoebe asked in a small voice.  
  
"He's already told us he won't hurt her till we show up. He wants us all at once; he wants to be the only one to have been able to accomplish what no others could. He's got a huge ego. And that ego and pride will be what brings him down. We just have to plan carefully."  
  
Phoebe nodded and sniffled. She grabbed the book and pulled it towards her. Slowly, she started flipping through the pages looking for the man who took their sister.  
  
Prue gave Phoebe's shoulder a comforting squeeze. "We'll be up all night looking for this guy unless Leo can find out something from the Elders." Phoebe looked up with determination. "Coffee?"  
  
"Please." Phoebe sniffled. "Prue, I thi—"  
  
Phoebe was interrupted by a knock at the door. Prue's eyes slowly locked with her sister's. Prue set down the coffee pot, and Phoebe inched around the table, but Prue's hand came up, freezing her in her spot.  
  
"You stay here." Prue said sternly.  
  
"I'm not letting you out of my sight, Prue." Phoebe replied. "I already made that mistake once today." She muttered quietly.  
  
"Phoebe—" But the knock came again. "We'll talk later."  
  
Prue slowly made her way to the front door; Phoebe was behind her, clinging to her arm. Prue stood back a few feet and used her power to turn the lock and open the door. She had her arm up and ready to defend herself and her sister.  
  
"What took you so long?" Darryl asked in concern. "Everything okay?"  
  
"Piper was taken and we have to get her back." Phoebe answered right off, turning to go back to the book.  
  
"Wait, Piper was taken?"  
  
"Yeah, we've also been shipped various body parts of our innocent since we…lost her." Prue answered solemnly.  
  
"Who took her? Is this a demonic thing or is it regular mortal evil?" Darryl came in and shut the door behind him as he and Prue followed Phoebe into the kitchen.  
  
"Well, we're not entirely sure." Prue admitted with reluctance. "We didn't exactly see him use any magic, but he does know we're the Charmed Ones, so at least we know that he is aware of the demonic and magical world around him. He's either a mortal who wants to be noticed by the Source, or he's a man working for the Source."  
  
"How did he get Piper if he didn't use magic?"  
  
"Our powers didn't seem to work on him." Phoebe told him, momentarily looking up from the book.  
  
"Then why were you ready to fling me off your doorstep?" Darryl asked in confusion. He was having a hard time following this. "If you thought I could be him, wouldn't your powers be useless?"  
  
"I don't know, Darryl! My sister is missing, I'm not exactly thinking clearly!" Prue snapped. Darryl took a step back, and Prue took a deep, calming breath. "I'm sorry, Darryl. This is just not a good time to talk about logic with me."  
  
"I can understand that. Look, I know now's probably not the best time, but Piper called me earlier today."  
  
"What for?" Phoebe tore herself away from the book and moved to stand in front of Darryl.  
  
"She asked me to drop off a package. She came by the office a few days ago and gave it to me and told me to hold onto it until she needed it." Darryl explained. He pulled a small box, wrapped in wax paper, out of his coat pocket. "Anyway, she called today and told me to bring it by."  
  
"What is it?" Phoebe asked.  
  
Darryl shrugged and handed it over to Prue. Prue turned the small box over in her hand. Phoebe moved closer to take a look. Prue untied the little rope holding the paper on. She drew back the wax paper to reveal a small cardboard box. She stuck her finger under the flap and pulled it open. She slid back by the table and dumped the contents out in the center of the table, near the book.  
  
"What in the world…"  
  
"Hang on, Prue…" Phoebe muttered. "We had been watching Jean for at least a week…"  
  
"Jean?"  
  
"Oh, Jean was the innocent." Phoebe informed Darryl. "But we'd been watching her over a week, but Piper was the only one who had talked to her. Remember?"  
  
Prue slowly nodded, gradually catching on to what Phoebe was saying. "The plan was to let Piper try to talk her into telling us if anything strange had happened to her. Then, if she were the right girl, we'd tell her who we were and find a way to help her."  
  
"Right, well, one night Piper came home and told us that Jean had told her everything. She had given her something…do you remember?"  
  
"Yeah…she gave Piper the—"  
  
"And Piper said it couldn't be—"  
  
"So, she told us she put it into—"  
  
"Safekeeping, right, so Darryl must have been the—"  
  
"So, what? Piper thought this was the key, but she knew something that we didn't?" Prue wondered aloud.  
  
"Possibly, and she said she couldn't talk about it until Leo got home that night, because she thought she'd been…magically bugged so to speak." Phoebe concluded.  
  
"And so we were left in the dark, with nothing to go on, except that we had to trust our sister."  
  
"Hi, I know you two work like this often," Darryl interrupted. "but for us outsiders who aren't in tune with the cosmic forces—or whatever magic this is—have no idea what kind of telepathic thought transference just went on between you."  
  
Phoebe rolled her eyes with a slight chuckle. "We're not telepaths, Darryl. But you may have just helped us find a clue to the problem we have to solve."  
  
"What clue?"  
  
Phoebe picked up the item that the box held. "This may well be the key to finding our sister."  
  
"What is it?"  
  
Phoebe faltered and turned to Prue for assistance. Prue took the item into her own hands and turned it over. "Well…it's metal, or so it seems. It's in a rounded off square shape…and it's shiny…it um—"  
  
"You don't have a clue do you?"  
  
"No, not really."  
  
"I have to get back to work, but call me if anything comes up." Darryl said. His face took on a more serious appearance. "I wish you all the luck in the world in finding Piper. Please, call me if things work out."  
  
"We will, Darryl." Phoebe gave him a hug. "Thank you so much."  
  
"I'm glad I could be of service to you." He hugged Prue and then held up his hand to keep her from following him out. "You need to solve this mystery. I can show myself out, and I have a feeling you need all the time you can get to work on that thing."  
  
Prue smiled and gave a nod. Darryl disappeared from the kitchen with a wave, and Phoebe grabbed Prue by the arm and swung her around until they were facing. She snatched the 'key' as they started calling it, out of Prue's hand and set it down on the table next to the book.  
  
"Think it's in the book?" Phoebe asked as Prue went to finish making the coffee.  
  
"You might give it a try… you never know." Prue answered with a slight shrug of her shoulders. "We've got a long night ahead of us."  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
She opened her eyes to the bright light pouring in all around her. She sat up and rolled her head to the side. She rubbed her neck as the crick made itself known. She pulled her legs out from under her and set them on the floor. Muscles in her legs ached from being curled up under her body the whole night. She yawned as she shielded her eyes from the sunshine.  
  
"So, much for the great idea of moving to the solarium." She muttered to herself.  
  
She looked over at her sister. Prue's head was leaning back against the chair and her mouth was wide open, she had her arm out where Phoebe had been leaning against her. Phoebe let out a little giggle and pushed Prue's jaw up. Prue stirred and opened her eyes.  
  
"I never went to sleep!" She said loudly, looking around the room. Phoebe was smiling at her. "What time is it?"  
  
Phoebe shrugged. "Probably a few hours before noon."  
  
"We're still where we started aren't we?" Phoebe nodded in response to Prue's question. "I was hoping it was all a bad dream." Prue stretched her arms and legs out. "This was a terrible sleeping arrangement."  
  
"Hey, coming in here was your idea." Phoebe pulled her sister out of the chair. "Let's go get breakfast so we can get back to that key."  
  
Prue trudged into the kitchen behind Phoebe and slumped down into a chair at the table. Phoebe was getting out bowls, spoons, milk, and the cereal. Prue leaned over and grabbed the wax paper that the box had been wrapped in. She folded it over in half, just to be keeping busy. She folded it over and ran her finger over a flap. She pulled the flap back and the wax paper peeled away from another piece of wax paper. Prue put it off to the side. She went back to folding the piece she had. Phoebe laid down the bowls, and Prue glanced over at the flat sheet of wax paper.  
  
"What is that?" Prue asked.  
  
"What?"  
  
She pulled the flat sheet back to her and looked at it more closely. "Hey, there's writing on this…"  
  
"What?" Phoebe dropped the box of cereal and the milk and ran to look over Prue's shoulder.  
  
Prue pointed. "Look, I think it's instructions to the key."  
  
"Read it!"  
  
"It says, 'Don't open the box. It seems impossible, but it's not. If you're reading this, I hope you remembered not to open the box. The main point I'm trying to make here, is to remember not to open the box.' Kinda redundant, huh?" Prue asked.  
  
"What else?"  
  
"Let's see, 'This box is what protects you from Him. As long as you've cast the proper spell upon yourself and put the box in the care of a mortal He cannot harm you with his magic, but your magic will be cancelled out as well. As long as the box resides with a mortal its magic cannot be tampered with. As long as the box resides with a mortal it cannot be taken by those possessing magic. The only way it can be transferred from a mortal to a magical being is if the mortal willingly gives it away. As long as the mortal refuses to hand it over, it cannot be taken, and the mortal cannot be harmed. However, a mortal may take the box from a mortal.' So, that's why Piper left it with Darryl. He's a cop; of course he's going to protect it for her." Prue guessed.  
  
"It doesn't say why not to open it?" Phoebe asked.  
  
Prue's eyes scanned along the paper. "Here, 'Once opened the box attacks any being with negative energy. Evil will naturally be attacked first. However, upon being opened in a room full of good beings, the magic held in the box will attack the first 'good' being with any negative thought.'" Prue finished reading. "So…if we open it without a demonic person in the room…it would attack us if we…I don't know, decided we hated the clock. That's a negative thought."  
  
"That's not so bad. We open the box when we've got the bad guy around and since he'll be thinking evil thoughts of murder then it'll immediately go after him." Phoebe shrugged.  
  
"One small problem…" Prue pointed out.  
  
"What's that?"  
  
"We still don't know how to open the box, or what kind of magic it uses when it's opened." Prue sighed. "The wax paper has a lot of explanations on why not to open it, but it doesn't exactly say how to open it."  
  
"Maybe, it's written in code that way if some ordinary guy got a hold of it he wouldn't be able to open it. Look at it as a safe guard." Phoebe reasoned. "All we have to do is crack the code."  
  
Prue scanned over the instructions once more. "Wait, this is good!"  
  
"What is? That we can't open it?"  
  
"No, Phoebe, listen. 'As long as you've cast the spell upon yourself and put the box in the care of a mortal He cannot harm you with his magic, but your magic will be cancelled out as well.'"  
  
"Okay?"  
  
"Well, this would explain why our powers didn't work on him when he attacked." Prue explained with excitement. "Piper must have cast the spell, and apparently you and I didn't have to be present for the spell to include us."  
  
"How can you be sure?"  
  
"My powers didn't work on him and neither did Piper's." Prue noted. "So, maybe they didn't work because of the spell. He never used magic on us because the spell wouldn't allow it, but as a result we couldn't use ours on him."  
  
"Right, but why exactly is that so great?"  
  
"That means that he can't hurt Piper."  
  
"But he can get someone else to." Phoebe reminded her. "Demons and warlocks do occasionally work in pairs."  
  
"You're right." Prue sighed. "But it's only been twelve hours. Let's hope he's still trying to figure out what's wrong with his powers before he has enough sense to bring in someone else. Besides, he told us he wouldn't hurt her until he had us all."  
  
"And now you trust the word of a demon?" Phoebe asked, picking up the cereal box.  
  
"Don't you?" Prue countered.  
  
Phoebe looked down and poured her cereal. She pushed a bowl of cereal over to Prue and sat down, eating her breakfast without replying to Prue's rhetorical question.  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
"I hope you're having fun." She commented, sitting on the cold, stone floor in the corner of a barred cell.  
  
"Shut up!"  
  
"Aw, I think the wittle demon is upset." Piper taunted.  
  
"Witch, I'm warning you!"  
  
"And then what?" Piper poked. "You can't hurt me. Hell, you can't even flick me."  
  
He screamed and ran to the bars; he grabbed a bar in each hand and bent them a bit out of shape. "What did you do to me?"  
  
"Boy, that's some anger management." Piper retorted. "Maybe you should see someone. This friend of mine knows a psychologist that could—"  
  
He interrupted her with a scream. She rolled her eyes and plugged her ears. He picked up a femur bone that was lying nearby and flung it at her. She leaned back and crossed her legs, crossing her arms across her chest. The bone came within a foot of her face and hit a field of energy. The area before her face flared bright blue and then the bone fell and the blue light disappeared, leaving no evidence of a protective shield around her.  
  
"You know, it's too bad this shield didn't take effect earlier, because I think I would've liked the fact that you couldn't touch me much more if I was still at home and you weren't carrying me off." Piper told him. "It's actually kinda funny. You brought me here, tossed me in this cell, but now you can't touch me or hurt me, and you can't use your power on me…" Piper picked up the bone and tossed it back at him. It hit him in the back, and he spun around glaring at her. "Even your little bone can't hurt me…sorry."  
  
"That's it!"  
  
"It is?" Piper asked sarcastically.  
  
"I will be back later! With a solution!" He roared as he turned and stormed out of the 'dungeon'.  
  
"Yeah, yeah, we're all problem solvers." Piper sighed and looked around the grimy cell. "Too bad I can't get myself out of this one."  
  
Piper stood up and walked to the bars. She touched the area where he had bent the bars. "Tough guy, huh?" A smile slowly crept across her lips. "A dumb guy also."  
  
She stuck her head through the bar. She pulled it back. She grabbed the bar above her head and pulled herself up and then pushed her feet through the opening he had made. She squeezed her torso through, and then jumped to the ground.  
  
"This guy has to be new at what he does." She remarked as she grabbed the black staff that he had left leaning against the wall. She went to the door and heard him coming back. "Damn!" She cursed. He was probably returning for the staff that she had. He opened the door, and she stuck the staff out in front of him.  
  
"Oh, thank you." He took the staff in his hand and turned to go.  
  
He paused half-way through the doorway and turned around. "What are you—" He began shouting.  
  
Piper cut him off with a blow to the head. She had grabbed the femur bone off the ground and swung it across his face. He spit up some blood and a tooth and collapsed to the floor. Piper shook her head is disbelief. "You've actually been successful in killing people?" She bent down and retrieved the staff and headed on her way. "I have no clue where I am, but I'll deal."  
  
She walked down a hallway and heard voices coming her way. She looked to the left and to the right, frantically searching for somewhere to hide. She opened a door to the left and ran through, quickly shutting the door.  
  
"Welcome!"  
  
Her eyes nearly bulged out of her head when she heard the greeting. She slowly turned around, praying that they wouldn't know who she was.  
  
"Are you here to be initiated?" She was asked.  
  
"Um…sure. Yep, that's what I'm here for." Piper tapped the floor with the staff. "Got myself a dark staff and everything." She noticed the other innocent looking people in the room. Most of them were hardly more than children. They were nearly all dressed in black or red robes with great hoods. "When do I get one of those?" She immediately asked, pointing to a robe.  
  
"Oh, you like?" The same man asked.  
  
"Yes."  
  
"Odd, most women prefer the revealing clothing." He rubbed his chin in thought. Piper swallowed hard, fearing she might have said the wrong thing. She looked around and noticed most of the people wearing the robes were men, and indeed, the women were in the most revealing 'uniforms' she'd ever seen. "You must be one of the more intellectual women."  
  
"What? Oh, yes! That's me."  
  
"It's no secret here; most of the women not dressed in robes are what we would call 'bimbos' or 'tramps' in the outside world."  
  
"I see." Piper replied.  
  
"Your name?"  
  
"My name? You want my name?" Piper asked cautiously. "What, do you make records or something?"  
  
"No, no records. Knowing your name is just something we do to remain…social."  
  
"Oh, right. Of course!" Piper laughed. "Well, I'm…Wilma."  
  
"Wilma?" He asked in confusion.  
  
"Right, Wilma." Piper confirmed, mentally kicking herself for giving such a stupid name.  
  
"Your name is Wilma?" He asked skeptically.  
  
"Yes, sir. My mother… you know… a flower child. All that…" Piper looked around trying to come up with a believable excuse. "Weed! All that weed must have gone to her head. She was a big cartoon fan."  
  
"You were named after Wilma Flintstone?" The man asked. His eyes couldn't have gotten any wider.  
  
"And is there a last name that goes with that?"  
  
"Oh, no, it's just Wilma. Like Madonna or Cher…it's just Wilma." Piper almost started laughing, but she forced herself to cough instead.  
  
"Are you alright?" He asked.  
  
"I'm fine, just a bit chilly." She admitted. "So, when do I get one of those robes?"  
  
"Well, if you're here for the initiation you'll get one now." He snapped his fingers and a black robe appeared in his hand.  
  
"Will I learn how to do that?" She asked, putting the robe on.  
  
"In time." He told her with a grin. "Now…"  
  
He turned around to continue the meeting, and Piper instantly opened the door, slipped out into the hallway, and pulled the hood up. She turned down the first corridor she could find. She walked along watching people with robes like hers; head the other direction, towards the meeting. She just hoped no one would stop her and tell her she was going the wrong way and order her to go back to the meeting. The she'd be forced to explain why she left to begin with.  
  
She wandered around trying to find a way back to her world; her hopes were really beginning to die down. She turned a corner and was faced with a dead end. She slowly opened the door and took a look.  
  
"Oh my God…" She whispered in astonishment. "My cell… I've been going in circles! Damn it! I'll never get out of here!" She complained through clenched teeth, with a kick to the wall.  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
"So…Here's the problem…" Prue began pacing in front of everyone in the Parlor. "We've got the answer to one of our problems." She took the little box from Phoebe and held it up. "This is the key to vanquishing the demon that has Piper. Oh, and do we have a name for him yet, Leo?"  
  
"No, I'm afraid not…" Leo sighed. "The Elders are on it though; I'll let you know when they've found something."  
  
"Cole? You have any clues yet?" Prue asked, handing the box back to Phoebe.  
  
"No, no one down there seems to know who he is. From what I've picked up he's a newcomer with a pretty big fan following."  
  
"But we are sure that he's a demon?" Prue asked.  
  
"Yeah, that's definite." Cole confirmed.  
  
"Okay, moving on…" Prue continued. "We know how to get rid of him, once we find out how to open the box. We don't, however, know where he's at or where he's keeping Piper. Cole?"  
  
"I couldn't find anything." Cole told them. "I was told that he had a girl locked up, but she broke out and disappeared. If I knew where his lair was I could search it for you, but no one down there knows where this guy is hiding."  
  
"Well, if she broke out there's a likely chance that it was our sister." Phoebe grinned. "Especially if she knows that he can't hurt her."  
  
"So, Phoebe, you and I will hit the books, try to find someway to locate Piper. Cole, I want you to go back down there and see if anything new has come up, be careful though." Prue added before he nodded and shimmered out. "Leo…" Prue paused. "I don't have a clue what you can do…"  
  
"I'll see what I can find out from my other charges. If the witch Piper got that box from knew anything about him then there might be others that know something." Leo reasoned. "I'll hurry back if I find anything out."  
  
Prue and Phoebe nodded, and Leo orbed out. Phoebe picked up the book. "To the attic?"  
  
"To the attic!" Prue agreed.  
  
  
  
  
  
"Look that way!!" The man shouted, ordering initiates down a corridor. One initiate went racing past him, in the wrong direction. "Hey!" He shouted. "You! Stop!" He sent out a coil of invisible rope and wrapped it around the initiate's wrist, pulling him to a stop. He turned around and lowered his head.  
  
"I didn't hear you!"  
  
The man released the initiate's wrist, it was a female, he called her forward. "Come back! You're supposed to be with a group!"  
  
About that time another group ran past them. "She went this way! We had her!" They shouted as they passed. "The witch went down this way!"  
  
"I'm sorry, with all the news about the breakout… I just got forgot proper conduct…" She apologized quickly, keeping her head down, hoping the initiate leader was an idiot and that he wouldn't catch on to what the passing group said. As long as he didn't put two and two together she was safe.  
  
"That's alright, all initiate's have something to learn." He pushed her towards a group of three, making her the fourth. "Go find that witch!"  
  
Piper's group grabbed their staffs and ran off. She quickly grabbed her staff and ran off after them. She looked down at the staff in her hand and hoped He wouldn't recognize it as his own. She looked up and her group had a woman cornered.  
  
"What are you doing?" She blurted out.  
  
"We caught the Halliwell!" A young boy answered gleefully.  
  
"No, you didn't!" Piper shouted. "That's one of our initiates! I saw her at the meeting."  
  
The boy straightened up. "Are you sure she wouldn't try blending in? Maybe she went to the meeting to throw us off."  
  
Piper swallowed hard. "I don't think this witch is that clever."  
  
The boy though a moment and then snickered. "Yeah, you're right; she's probably just a retard…"  
  
"A retard?" Piper repeated.  
  
"Yeah, you know? They're—"  
  
"I don't wanna hear it…" She interrupted. "We have a job to do." She looked around at the others. They didn't look all that bright. "Which way to the entrance? She may have headed that way."  
  
"Exactly! She's gonna wanna get home!" The boy shouted and took off running.  
  
Piper grinned beneath the hood…this was going to be easier than she had expected. Piper glanced back behind her at the girl. The girl was watching Piper without moving. Piper's pace slowed a little. The girl cocked her head and then pointed her arm up at Piper. Piper turned around and started running faster, she lost sight of her group as she cut across an open room, into another hallway.  
  
She stopped at a dead end. She took a deep breath, and glared at the door. She got a good grip on the staff and opened the door. She closed her eyes and walked into the room. She exhaled and opened her eyes. There was the cell…the bent bars…and the femur.  
  
"I can't believe this!" She screamed into the room. She brought the staff up in both hands and brought it down across her knee, snapping it in two. She flung the two halves across the room. They clattered against the bars and fell to the ground.  
  
Piper backed up against the wall and slid down. She wrapped her arms around her knees and buried her face in her arms. "I can't hide forever…" She muttered, biting back tears. "I just want to go home."  
  
Piper jumped when the door slammed shut. She looked up and scrambled to her feet. There was a man dressed in a long black robe walking towards her. She backed up quickly, trying to pull back farther into the robe, so she would be hidden. The robe wasn't that magical. Her eyes darted all around the room, searching for a way to get herself out of this one. He pulled back his hood and stood before her, a menacing form, making her catch her breath in her throat.  
  
  
  
  
  
"Cole!" Piper shouted. "You scared the hell out of me!"  
  
"Not intentionally." Cole said apologetically.  
  
Piper hurried forward. "You're forgiven, now take me home!"  
  
"I can't do that."  
  
"What? Why not?" Piper took a step back. "What do you mean you can't?"  
  
"I couldn't shimmer in…meaning we can't shimmer out. The entrance is under watch. This whole complex is at high guard, searching for you." Cole explained.  
  
"Why can't you shimmer here?" Piper asked.  
  
"Since you broke out of…" Cole looked around the room curiously. "Here…um, why are you back in here?"  
  
"Not for lack of trying to get away, trust me. I just keep ending up here." Piper replied with a sigh. "Now… you were saying?"  
  
"Well, since you broke out of your cell and 'disappeared'…" He gestured to her lovely new black initiate's robe. "They safe guarded the area from all types of magical means of escape. Leo wouldn't be able to orb here, I can't shimmer, and your sisters' spells wouldn't work either."  
  
"He's that powerful?" Piper asked in shock. Cole nodded. "I did break out, you know? I smashed his face in…I knocked out one of his teeth. For crying out loud, I knocked Him out!"  
  
Cole watched her with no reply. Piper finally picked up the staff she had broken. She fit the two halves together where they had split. "Mend." She ordered in a gruff voice.  
  
The staff shot out sparks of red and black light. When the sparks died down, Piper brought the staff up for examination. She smiled when she was sure the staff had fixed itself.  
  
"How did you do that?" Cole asked, worried he may have been too late to save her.  
  
"Oh, I saw some other initiate do it. Apparently, the staff can take care of itself." Piper grabbed Cole by the arm and pushed him towards the door. "Now, you show me how you got in."  
  
"I told you…it's all guarded." Cole reminded her.  
  
"And yet you still made it in?"  
  
Cole opened his mouth to say something but closed it instead and pointed down a hallway. "Stay behind and follow me." He muttered as he pulled his hood up. Piper did the same.  
  
"All of the initiate's have a staff." Piper whispered. "They attacked a guy earlier for not having one because they thought he was me. Then they attacked a girl they thought was me…" Piper sighed. "Point is…we need to find you a staff. The staff represents the initiation; they'll know you aren't a real initiate if you walk around without one."  
  
"Fine, where can I get one?"  
  
Piper stepped out in front of Cole. He grabbed her and pulled her back. "I told you to stay behind me."  
  
"But I know where I'm going." She pushed past him again and led him down a hall.  
  
She opened a door to the left and went in with Cole behind her. It was the meeting room she had incidentally run into earlier. Piper pointed to a corner at a rack of staffs. Cole nodded and soon had a staff of his own.  
  
"Now, let's get going." Cole said. "This time, you stay behind me; I don't want to end up going in circles for the rest of the day."  
  
Piper rolled her eyes at him. "Fine, lead on."  
  
  
  
  
  
"Phoebe, you got anything?" Prue called over from the podium.  
  
"No, you?"  
  
"I'm doing about as well as you are." Prue replied.  
  
"What is taking Leo so long?" Phoebe wondered aloud. "How many charges, besides us, do you think he has?"  
  
"Who knows? All I'm worried about right now is finding Piper."  
  
Phoebe nodded her agreement and went back to looking through the pile of books she had. She was idly flipping through pages, looking at pictures, with no hope of finding anything useful.  
  
"Where is Cole?" Prue asked, suddenly.  
  
"Off doing what you told him to do."  
  
"Well, last time I sent him he was back within an hour." Prue remembered.  
  
Phoebe shrugged as she tossed another book to the pile on the floor. "Maybe he actually found something out."  
  
Prue slammed the Book of Shadows shut with a sigh of frustration. "I can't believe the book doesn't have anything!"  
  
"Cole did say this guy was a newcomer so maybe he just—" Phoebe paused as she looked down at the book she had just opened.  
  
"What?" Prue asked, watching her sister. "Maybe he just what?" Phoebe didn't answer. Prue started walking towards her. "What did you find?"  
  
"It's…the box." Phoebe muttered. "It says how to open it!" Phoebe cried in excitement. "Give me the box!"  
  
"No!" Prue said simply. "Did you forget what the wax paper said? It said it more than once."  
  
Phoebe's eyes lit up as she remembered. "Right…I forgot."  
  
"So, what does it say?" Prue asked as she sat down next to Phoebe.  
  
"It's got a spell to say…" Phoebe pointed to a picture of the box for Prue to see. "But you have to be holding the box with your fingers on that corner, on the bottom…right there…and on the top…there, and on the other side."  
  
"Kinda like a combination lock?"  
  
"Yeah, sort of like that." Phoebe nodded. "This is so simple!"  
  
"Sure, when you've been told how to do it." Prue agreed.  
  
"Great! Now we have everything. All we have to do now is find Piper." Phoebe said in a cheerful tone, just as the doorbell rang. Phoebe jumped up in excitement. "I'll get that."  
  
Prue straightened up the pile of books on the floor as Phoebe went downstairs. After the pile was smaller, Prue headed down stairs with the book Phoebe had found the answer in. She made it halfway down the stairs when she heard Phoebe scream. Then Phoebe pushed past her on the stairs and a door slammed shut. Prue turned around to follow her sister to see what was wrong. Prue followed Phoebe to the bathroom door and heard her losing everything in her stomach.  
  
"Phoebe? Are you okay?" Prue asked.  
  
Phoebe didn't respond. After Phoebe finished, Prue pushed the door open. Phoebe was leaning back against the tub, pale as she could be. Prue grabbed a little rag out of the cabinet and wet it down. She bent over next to her sister and tilted her head back, laying the rag on her forehead.  
  
"What happened?" Prue crouched down next to Phoebe.  
  
"We got another package…" Phoebe muttered without opening her eyes, tears seeped out the sides of her closed eyelids.  
  
"Oh, sweetie, I'm sorry." Prue said. "I'll go take care of it."  
  
Phoebe caught Prue's wrist. "Prue, I don't have a weak stomach, and I know you don't…but I'm warning you…" Phoebe leaned over the sink and rinsed her mouth out with water. "I'm warning you, Prue…you don't want to see what He sent."  
  
"Phoebe, I've already dealt with the kind of things He sends us." Prue replied and headed for the door without looking back at Phoebe.  
  
  
  
  
  
"Thanks for coming, Darryl."  
  
"Anytime, Prue."  
  
"What are you going to do with it?" Phoebe mustered up her voice and asked the question they were all avoiding.  
  
"Well…" Darryl cleared his voice. "It's not everyday you receive a—"  
  
"Don't say it!" Phoebe warned.  
  
"I'll take the package back with me, maybe I can get a lead on who this guy is…" Darryl suggested. "You say that He's demonic, but you don't know anything…Prue, wait…just let me check." Darryl said, putting his hand up to cut off Prue.  
  
"Thank you again, Darryl." Phoebe muttered, keeping her red, puffy eyes downcast.  
  
"I'll just get this out of here." He picked up the package and headed outside. He gave a slight wave as he climbed into his car.  
  
Prue waved him off and closed the door. She took a deep breath to calm herself. Phoebe had been right when she warned Prue. Prue couldn't believe what she had seen sitting in that box, and indeed, after closing it and calling Morris over, she had lost her previous meal as well.  
  
"Prue…" Phoebe's quiet voice came from the Solarium.  
  
Prue entered the room to see Phoebe standing before some plants and flowers, gently running her fingers over the soft petals. Prue stood behind her sister, watching her before she spoke.  
  
"Phoebe, I –"  
  
"Prue, you've apologized for what I saw enough. It wasn't your fault." Phoebe muttered, watching the flower.  
  
"I know, but I just…" Prue sighed deeply. She crossed the room and sat down near to where Phoebe was standing.  
  
Phoebe sniffled as a few fresh tears slipped down her face. "How could someone do something like that?" Her voice was barely above a whisper. "I know He's evil, but I don't understand how anyone could be so heartless…" Phoebe bent her head and covered her mouth with her hand.  
  
Prue stood up and encompassed Phoebe's seemingly child-like form in her arms. Phoebe buried her face in her sister's shoulder, clinging to Prue as though she was a source of power that Phoebe might draw strength from just by being close.  
  
"I can't comprehend what it must feel like to be that cold and hateful." Prue admitted. "I can't claim to understand how He could do what he did. I wish you had never seen it though."  
  
Phoebe closed her eyes tighter. She knew she wouldn't be sleeping well at night for awhile. She hadn't been this upset by any of the previous packages that he had sent. The severed head had been terrible, but in a strange way, that innocent had looked at peace, oddly enough. He had done much the same thing with this package. He had sent yet another severed head, albeit he was much more creative with this one.  
  
Phoebe's knees started to give out as she shook. Prue lowered herself and her sister to the ground. Phoebe wouldn't allow Prue to let go of her. Phoebe saw herself opening the package, too excited about her discovery to think about what the package might contain. She relived that moment as she flung the lid of the box back. She burst into a fit of wracking sobs as she collapsed against Prue. Prue stroked her sister's back, gently rocking her from side to side.  
  
Phoebe gasped between sobs as the images of earlier flashed through her mind. The severed head in the box… was the precious head of a small child. Prue tried to control her own weeping as Phoebe tightened her grip on Prue. The site of empty eye sockets, the nerves still in place, the dried blood matted in the cropped off hair, and the mangled flesh, made Phoebe cry out in heart-wrenching pain. She opened her eyes, hoping that would make the images disappear, but they remained, plastering themselves across walls, floors, chairs… She couldn't get that horrible sight out of her mind. She felt immense anguish and extreme rage all at once. She didn't want to even think about the horrid things He had dropped into the box with the poor child. She couldn't help but remember how disfigured the face was after, what she guessed was hours of pleasure for Him but hours of torture for the child. So severe was the damage that had Phoebe been asked what gender the child had been; she would not have been able to tell.  
  
Prue finally lifted Phoebe onto a chair and pried her sister apart from herself. "Phoebe, you have to breath." Prue reminded her sister, swallowing back the lump in her throat.  
  
Phoebe was sobbing so hard that she was beginning to hyperventilate. Prue knew that she had to calm Phoebe down enough so that she could reestablish a normal breathing pattern. Prue continued the gentle stroking of her sister's back. After a few minutes, Phoebe was leaning against Prue, breathing at a normal rate with tears still cascading down her face. Prue was holding onto Phoebe, thinking of Piper. She was praying, as was Phoebe, that Piper was safe and that they would see her again soon. Phoebe continued telling herself repeatedly that Cole had found Piper, and that was why he hadn't come back yet. That Cole was protecting her sister from Him. She strongly believed this was true…at that time; she needed to believe it was.  
  
  
  
  
  
"I don't care what you have to do, Cole! Just get me out of here!" Piper ordered in a low voice.  
  
"I told you, Piper, I can't shimmer here, and they've guarded the only other entrance I know of."  
  
"Well, we'll kill him all and break out!" Piper said, her face set in all seriousness.  
  
"They're just innocent kids, Piper. They don't know what they're really dealing with." Cole reminded her.  
  
"Damn it, Cole! I can't take this place any longer! How many times have we ended up standing in front of this…" Piper, fuming, slammed her fist against the door to the room where her cell had been. "This…damn door!"  
  
Cole grabbed Piper by the shoulders and forced her to look at him. "Piper, calm down."  
  
Piper angrily shoved him back. "Don't tell me what to do, Cole." Piper brought her staff up and poked him in the chest with it, forcing him to take a step back. "I've had it with all this nonsense! I'm sick and tired of being 'captured' and I'm sick of being attacked all the time! For once…couldn't things just go MY way?"  
  
"Piper, I have no control over that, and you know it." Cole said, pushing her staff away with his own staff.  
  
"If I hadn't cast that damn spell I could've blown his demonic ass to hell and back." Piper growled, slamming the butt of the staff into the stone ground.  
  
"Piper, I think you need to take a few breaths so that we can logically think up a plan to get out of here." Cole said in a calm but agitated voice. "I don't want to be spending the rest of eternity here, going in circles."  
  
Piper glared at him. "You got yourself into this mess! I don't know what pushed you to come here anyway! Was it Phoebe? Did she send you to protect me? Do they really think I always have to have a protector?" Piper spun around, marching off down the hall. "Maybe I can take care of myself!"  
  
Cole grabbed her by the arm again, turning her around. "What the hell has gotten into you?"  
  
Piper stared down at his hand before meeting his eyes with a steely gaze. "Get your hand off of me." She said slowly, in a threatening voice.  
  
"Not until you talk to me." He replied in much the same tone.  
  
Piper pushed her staff up to his chest. "Back!"  
  
Cole started to push the staff away, and Piper shook her head.  
  
"I gave you your chance." She said. She muttered something and a red flurry of sparks flew out of the end of the staff, flinging Cole up against the wall.  
  
Piper was curiously as Cole got to his feet and glared at her. He tossed his staff to the ground and called up a handful of electricity. "Give me your staff." He demanded.  
  
"I don't think so." Piper muttered, turning to go.  
  
Cole rolled his eyes with a sigh and flung the bolt at her. It hit her square in the back and knocked her to her knees. The staff when sliding to the wall in front of her; she started crawling towards it. Cole walked in front of her, blocking her way. She glared up at him and then stood up.  
  
"Give me your robe." Cole held out his hand, and held the other hand back – ready with another low-voltage bolt.  
  
Piper sighed. The sting in her back wasn't very pleasant. She hesitated and watched Cole. He looked down at her fully irritated by her actions. He was sick of all the possessing…he was sick of evil trying to turn everyone else evil, he was sick of it all, and that's exactly was the robe and the staff were doing. He'd seen it done a dozen times; why not enchant initiation robes with magic? If you were turning them evil by magic, you wouldn't have to worry about them backing out of the initiation process due to their conscious getting to them.  
  
"Piper, your sisters are worried about you." Cole said. "Now, ditch the robe so we can get out of here."  
  
"We can't walk around in here unnoticed if I take off the robe." Piper said between clenched teeth.  
  
"Well, I won't be leaving with a good witch either, if you keep it on." Cole snapped at her. His last nerve wearing thin, "Here…" He pulled his robe off and flung it to the floor.  
  
Piper shook her head and turned to go again, bracing herself for the bolt. Instead, her feet were swept out from beneath her. She fell backwards, and Cole pinned her down. He grabbed the bottom of the robe and pulled it towards her head. Piper's arms were flailing in protest, but eventually Cole managed to yank the robe over her head, leaving her hair in disarray.  
  
He tossed the robe on top of his. "Are you ready yet?"  
  
Piper looked up at him confused. "What?"  
  
He held out his hand to help her up. She took it, and he pulled her to her feet. "Let's get out of here."  
  
"How?" Piper looked around, seeing they were still in front of the cell door.  
  
"Get ready, wonder woman, this is your chance to protect yourself." Cole told her. "We're breaking out the entrance."  
  
"Wonder woman?" Piper followed him down the hall. "Cole, what if they see us?"  
  
"We'll just leave them a little…stunned." Cole decided.  
  
"Of course…" Piper muttered, stopping in the middle of the hall. "What makes you think you can find the entrance?"  
  
"I found it once didn't I?"  
  
"And we were chased off." Piper reminded him. "Ordered to find the 'girl' instead of wandering around aimlessly, and you haven't been able to find it since then. All we seem to be able to find is that damned door."  
  
"Well, standing around here arguing about it won't do us any good." Cole replied harshly. "Can we just go?"  
  
"Lead on, Captain." Piper replied, rolling her eyes at him. "And why does my back hurt?"  
  
"This is getting old." Cole muttered as he picked his way through the maze of halls.  
  
  
  
  
  
"Okay, so…now we have the box, the spell to open the box, a missing sister, a missing boyfriend, and a missing whitelighter. Well, this is just perfect." Prue muttered sarcastically.  
  
"So, are we better off or worse off than when we started?"  
  
"Well, Pheebs…when we started we had no idea who he was, how to get rid of him, and our sister was still missing. Basically we're in a better spot now, minus the fact that Cole and Leo aren't around."  
  
"Should we try calling Leo again?"  
  
"What difference would it make? We've called him twelve times already." Prue dropped the book she'd been looking at onto the table. "Either he's got problems of his own, or he's learning useful information and is too busy to check in."  
  
Phoebe got up out of the chair, dropping another book onto the table. "Nothing more in there. Do you think Cole found Piper?"  
  
"I hope so." Prue replied.  
  
Phoebe looked around restlessly. "Well, what do we do now? I mean, we have to do something, I can't just stand around here and wait on something amazing to happen."  
  
"Hey…" Prue looked thoughtful as she stared at the pile of books on the table. "Do you think we could scry for information?"  
  
Phoebe shrugged and thought about it. "Maybe…we've scryed for stranger things…"  
  
"Let's try…" Prue suggested excitedly. "Maybe we can find something that will tell us where He's gone."  
  
Phoebe started heading towards the stairs with Prue. "It's worth a try."  
  
They got to the attic, and Prue pulled out the map and crystal. She set the map on the knee high table and glanced over at Phoebe. "We have to be specific on what we're looking for."  
  
Phoebe took up the pendulum and held it over the map. "Specific it is…"  
  
  
  
  
  
"Psst!!" Cole hissed at Piper. "Get back over here!"  
  
Piper rolled her eyes and backed away from the corner and took her place behind Cole. "I was just taking a look."  
  
"How many were there?"  
  
"Ten... give or take a couple." Piper guessed. "I didn't exactly get a good look." She whispered in an accusing tone.  
  
"Ten…" Cole muttered to himself.  
  
As they were discussing their plan to breakout a young man can around the corner behind them. He looked at their strange clothing, noticing they were dressed in the official robes that were worn around here. He glanced behind himself and snuck up behind Piper. They were watching the corner ahead of them. He quietly watched with them.  
  
"Well, how many can you freeze at once?"  
  
"You want me to freeze them?" Piper asked.  
  
"Your powers will work on them won't they?"  
  
"I thought they would… I mean the spell only said my powers wouldn't work on Him and His wouldn't work on me, but apparently they're included with Him." Piper explained in a low voice. "Don't you think I would have frozen them and gotten out before this if I could?"  
  
The young man thought for a moment and then spoke up in a soft voice. "They're only included because he's cast a mind control spell over them all."  
  
Piper nearly jumped out of her skin, but Cole wrapped an arm around her waist and a hand around her mouth.  
  
"Shh!" He hissed at her.  
  
Piper nodded slowly and Cole let go. He turned on the young man.  
  
"Who are you?" Cole demanded in a less than friendly voice.  
  
"I'm an initiate." He explained. "My name is Derek."  
  
"What are you doing?" Piper asked. "Shouldn't you be screaming that you found me?"  
  
"Let's give the kid ideas, why don't we?" Cole glared at Piper.  
  
"I backed out of the initiation." Derek explained. "I saw what was happening to the others. I tried to get out, but they wouldn't let me. He has placed a spell on the staffs and the robes. Anyone who has the two will not be able to tell right from wrong. Evil will be the only thing that feels right."  
  
"Why are you helping us?" Piper asked.  
  
"I want out. You want out. I figured you could help me." Derek said, twisting his fingers around a fold of his robe.  
  
"How come you're still wearing one of the robes if you know what they do?" Cole asked, watching Derek intently.  
  
"The robe doesn't affect me. The staff, however, I could feel the negative energy coming from it." Derek said. "Not all the others can resist magic like I can though."  
  
"So, what are you saying…that these kids didn't want to be here?"  
  
"Oh, no…" Derek corrected Piper. "They all wanted to be here. Or at least most of them. I'm sure this wasn't what they were expecting. I, for one, was told this was a scientific institution where if I completed a maze for them, they would pay me twenty bucks an hour. It was supposed to be a psychological experiment to see how people reacted to the maze." Derek paused, watching their reactions. "I don't know what they're telling the kids now days. I've been in here for two years. I can't get out."  
  
Piper stared at him. "What else do you know about this de—this guy?"  
  
"Well, first off, I know he's a demon, obviously." He smiled and Piper rolled her eyes. Of course he knew. "Second, I know that he isn't who most witches will tell you he is."  
  
"What do you mean by that?" Cole asked curiously.  
  
"There may not be any that know of Him left. However, if you ask about him then you'll find that he was vanquished by a powerful demon two centuries ago."  
  
"Then how is here now?" Piper asked in confusion. "I don't think I follow you."  
  
"Well, it's hard to have a clear conversation, when you've been hiding in this maze for the last two years. What I mean to say is…From the description you would give of Him other witches would find a demon in their book of shadows that would fit that description, but it wouldn't be him."  
  
"Then who would it be?" Piper asked, frustrated.  
  
"It would be his father." Derek explained. "He has been in hiding for years, decades actually."  
  
"You're saying that he is the son of a demon?" Piper asked in a skeptical tone.  
  
Cole looked down at her. "You are aware that I am the son of a demon aren't you?"  
  
Piper looked down. "Yes, but that's not what I me—"  
  
"Demons do reproduce, you know?" Cole added.  
  
Piper sighed and motioned for Derek to continue.  
  
"Well, he's stronger than his father was, but he hasn't been acknowledged by the Source because his father was an utter failure, and He was raised by his mortal mother, and not under the Source's scrutiny. He's tried to get the Source to recognize him and give him a place in he…" Derek watched Cole then glanced at Piper. "In the underworld, but the Source won't accept him because of his father's past deeds. His father was seriously frowned upon; apparently his father had tried to over throw the Source."  
  
Cole's eyes got wide. "It can't be…"  
  
"What?" Piper asked quickly.  
  
"I think I may know—" Cole broke off. "We have to get out of here." He peeked around the corner again. "Here's what we'll do. Derek, you walk out and get their attention. I'll come out after you've distracted them and I'll throw a few bolts out to stun them. While they're recovering…we leave."  
  
"That sounds awfully easy." Derek commented. "You think it will work?"  
  
"There's only one way to find out." Cole said as he shoved Derek around the corner.  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
"Would you just sit still?" Cole muttered.  
  
He had ripped his shirt into shreds and was trying to tie them around Piper's arm. She had been running out of the complex with Derek when one of the initiates pulled a hidden dagger on her and sliced her arm open.  
  
"I think I might pass out." Piper said in a low voice as Cole tied the cloth around her arm. "Ow!" She yelped.  
  
"Sorry, it has to be tight to maintain pressure until I get you to the manor where Leo can heal you." Cole explained.  
  
Derek was watching the kids that Cole had knocked out. Cole bent over and picked Piper up. Derek turned, ready to leave.  
  
"Cole, put me down…" Piper weakly slapped his arm. "I can still walk."  
  
Cole looked at her skeptically.  
  
"Oh, alright, so I'm a little light headed…"  
  
Cole looked back at Derek. "Let's go." He motioned for Derek to walk ahead of him.  
  
They pushed through the gates that the initiates had been guarding. They walked down a hall until finally reaching an opening. The opening led to a wooded area. Piper had Cole let her down, as she looked around Cole told Derek to be off.  
  
"You better start for home pretty fast…it shouldn't be long before they wake up and come looking." Cole said, giving Piper his arm to help her stay upright.  
  
"You're not taking me to the city with you?" He asked.  
  
"I can't." Cole replied. "I have to get Piper home."  
  
"Then I better be off." Derek sighed. "Can you tell me which way you think I should head?"  
  
"I'd say any direction away from here would be a good start." Cole answered. Piper gripped his arm and started to sway.  
  
"Take me home now?"  
  
Cole nodded his head at Derek, and pulled Piper closer, shimmering to the manor. He picked her up again, and carried her to the sitting room. He laid her down on the couch and covered her with a blanket.  
  
"I'll go find your sisters."  
  
"Thanks." She muttered, feeling a bit queasy.  
  
Cole set a pillow under her head and then checked the kitchen for Prue and Phoebe. Neither of them was there, so he went upstairs to the attic. As he neared the door he could hear Prue and Phoebe bickering over something.  
  
"Prue, just think about it for a minute!" Phoebe snapped. "If you'd stop arguing long enough to listen, I could explain my point of view!"  
  
"Phoebe, I know what you're thinking, I just don't—"  
  
Cole knocked on the frame of the door. Prue and Phoebe both looked over at him. At first they both stared at him dumbly, and then Phoebe was in his arms. Prue was at his side waiting to hear what he'd found out.  
  
"Cole!" Phoebe chirped. "Where have you been? Why are you in your undershirt?"  
  
"Who cares where you've been, what'd you find out?" Prue interjected.  
  
"Ladies, ladies, please calm down." Cole took Phoebe by the hand. "I think you two should come downstairs with me."  
  
"Cole, we need to know what you found out!" Prue pressed.  
  
"Prue, I think it's more important that you come downstairs." Cole replied.  
  
"What for?" Phoebe asked, watching him curiously.  
  
"Follow me." He muttered.  
  
"Cole, tell us wh—"  
  
"I will, once we're downstairs." Cole told her, leading Phoebe down the stairs, Prue trailing behind.  
  
He led them to the sitting room. Before they saw Piper, he stopped them. "Where's Leo?"  
  
"He's not here. He went to find out what he could about the demon." Phoebe answered.  
  
"I think you should call Leo."  
  
"Now?" Prue asked. "We've already tried, and he hasn't answered us."  
  
"He needs to be here." Cole told them.  
  
"Why?" Prue asked.  
  
"What's wrong?" Phoebe added.  
  
Cole led them forward where Piper was lying on the couch. They both gasped when they saw her. They started to hug her, but Cole caught them both by the arm. "She's hurt."  
  
They noticed the cloth wrapped around her arm, the blood seeping through from her wound. They also noticed Piper was a bit paler than usual. She smiled up at them and touched her hurt arm.  
  
"I'm bleeding…" She pointed out before her eyes rolled back and her head lolled to the side as she passed out.  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
Slowly, her eyes opened. She was alone in the sitting room, still lying on the couch. A few hours had passed, it was definitely evening now. She tried to sit up, however the pang that shot through her arm prevented her from doing so. She winced and settled back against the pillow. Where was everyone? Wouldn't they be here waiting on her to wake up? Why was her arm still injured? Surely, Leo would have healed her by now. She sighed as she gazed around the room, for some reason she felt an eerie presence, and she was beginning to dislike being alone. Everything was oddly silent. A sound filled the room; Piper jumped. She painfully, propped herself up to peek over the top of the couch. The noise came again. Piper looked around nervously, hoping someone would come. It sounded like someone rattling the front door knob, trying to get in. If someone really was trying to break in this way, then she wouldn't be very successful in stopping them. Her head was still swimming, and her arm felt like lead—definitely too heavy to lift.  
  
The rattling of the doorknob became quicker, sounding more violent, accompanied by, what sounded to Piper, like someone slamming their body up against the door. Piper started to sit up. She moved slowly and once her feet were on the ground she tried to stand up. The room began tilting and the floor seemed to be sliding out from beneath her feet. Her mind reeled as she tried to recall the fight that had taken place earlier. Cole hadn't seen what happened to her, and all she remembered was having her arm sliced open. Was it possible that she'd been hit in the head? Surely, a person couldn't get this dizzy from a tiny little wound like the one on her arm, could they? Then again it was hardly tiny.  
  
The noise came louder, more persistent. Piper started towards the stairs and the room began spinning in every direction, she started swaying, she wasn't sure where the floor was….  
  
"Catch her!" Phoebe yelled from the top of the stairs.  
  
Cole shimmered down behind Piper and caught her as she collapsed. She looked up at Cole with appreciation written across her face. "The room isn't staying very still."  
  
"Who is at the door?" Phoebe snapped out the rhetorical question in frustration.  
  
Prue came down the stairs with the Book of Shadows in her arms. She marched up to the door, angrily pushed the lock back, and started to open the door. Before she could turn the knob, the person on the outside shoved the door open and lost his footing, falling to his face at their feet.  
  
"Derek?" Cole asked aloud in confusion.  
  
"Shut the door! Shut the door! Shut the door! Damn it! Now!" Derek screamed in hysteria.  
  
"Okay!" Phoebe shuffled past Prue and slammed the door shut, turning the lock. "Calm down… Derek, was it? Why don't you start by telling us what's wrong."  
  
"After…" Derek paused to swallow as he climbed to his feet. "After you left me in the woods…I headed towards the city… they followed me, and I—I…" He looked around nervously. "Oh no…I led them to you… I'm such an idiot!" He slapped himself in the forehead. "I have to leave, we all have to leave! Don't you see? He's coming! We'll all be in boxes! We'll be some poor old lady's mail!"  
  
Piper moved to Phoebe's side. Phoebe stuck Piper's arm around her neck to hold her up while Cole went to restrain Derek. Prue set the book down on the table in front of the couch and then moved to Phoebe's side to watch.  
  
"Derek, what are you talking about?" Cole asked in a serious, almost threatening voice.  
  
"They're coming; I knew I shouldn't have come! They'll send your head back to the source!" He turned to gawk at the sisters. "Your heads will probably be sent to that inspector...the one who held the key…" Derek's eyes got wider and began to glaze over. "The key that will destroy Him."  
  
"You need to get him out of that robe." Piper spoke up.  
  
"What?" Phoebe and Prue both inquired at once.  
  
"He's starting to be affected…" Piper tried to explain. "Cole, you know what I'm talking about…he's acting the same way I was when the magic started to sink in and mix with mine."  
  
Cole began to forcibly pull the robe over the boy's head. Derek started screaming and kicking at Cole. Cole took the kid down and practically sat on his legs, pinning him to the ground. Derek was thrashing around as Cole pulled the robe over his head.  
  
"No!" Derek screamed in anguish. "I'm nothing without my robe! Please! Don't take it away! I need it!"  
  
"You don't need this!" Cole said in disgust as he ripped the robe in half.  
  
Derek grabbed the two shreds and started to shake. "I need that power! What will I feed off of now that it's gone?" He looked up at Cole and the sisters with pleading eyes. "I have to have that power! I'll die without it."  
  
"No, you won't." Phoebe stopped his ranting. "You're just addicted to the feel of the evil…I know what you're going through, but believe me…it's not worth it."  
  
"Oh, you don't think I know!" Derek asked curtly and spat on the floor at their feet. "I know all about that good magic… I was one of the good guys once…you know how that worked out? My life was taken from me as I tried to save an innocent…The innocent turned me over to the dark forces that I was fighting! I trusted that innocent like she trusted me to protect her!" Derek threw the shredded robe to the floor and glared up at Phoebe.  
  
"Derek, I think you need to calm do—"  
  
"I had devoted my life to helping others. It was so fulfilling." Derek muttered as he inched towards the sisters.  
  
Cole stepped in front of the sisters. Derek smiled at him. "I think you should step back, Derek."  
  
"Oh, most certainly." Derek nodded and looked down.  
  
He stepped backwards and looked up. "This good?" Derek chuckled and then lifted his hand. "However, I think this would be better." He thrust his hand out in Cole's direction, sending a black ball of energy at Cole. Cole flew back and smashed against the doorframe.  
  
"Cole!" Phoebe cried out, but Prue stopped her from running to him.  
  
"My innocent didn't care about me. She didn't care that I was constantly risking my head to save hers. So after she turned me over to save herself…" Derek looked down and grinned. "I took her head. I just thought it unfair that she never risked her head for me."  
  
Prue glared at him. "You're Him, aren't you?"  
  
"Could I possibly make it any clearer? Would you like me to spell it out?" He slowly inched towards Phoebe. "How did you like your gift, my dear?"  
  
"Get away from me!" Phoebe hissed at him.  
  
"He was such a lovely child…he wanted to be just like me. Of course, he didn't know I was evil at the time." Derek chuckled. "He did everything I told him. He followed directions and orders perfectly right down to the very last detail. When he came to see me that night…his eyes all alight with wonder…" Derek's face took on a sterner appearance, with anger welling up inside him. "That love he watched me with! Like I were the father he never had…I couldn't stand it…I wanted those eyes! Why wouldn't anyone look at me with eyes like that anymore?" Derek reached into his pocket and pulled his fist out.  
  
He held his hand out and rolled his fingers out, revealing a set of eyes. Phoebe gasped and looked away. Piper closed her eyes and took a deep breath. Derek looked down at the eyes, with an almost sad look.  
  
"I just wanted to see those eyes more often." Derek's voice lowered. "When I took them…I thought I'd be able to look at them and see that love whenever I wanted, but now…they're just—" He pitched the eyes across the room into the wall. "They're just eyes. Dead, cold, hard eyes…"  
  
"You're one sick and twisted bastard." Prue said through clenched teeth.  
  
"But now…I've got you where I want you." He cackled. He stopped mid-cackle. "Of course, you never recognized me. You couldn't now, could you? Not while I was in my human form, of course." He held his arms out and transformed into a man with dark black skin with yellow lightning shaped marks running down his neck and arms. His eyes began to glimmer a greenish color, and he had two small, but very pointed, horns split their way through his flesh. "Better?"  
  
Piper rolled her head to the side and whispered in Phoebe's arm. "He's insane…he can't hurt us. We're still protected by the spell."  
  
Phoebe looked over at Prue. "Piper needs to sit down, she's hurt."  
  
"Do what you want with her!" Derek laughed. "She's useless now anyway."  
  
Phoebe glared at him while talking to Prue. "Help me carry her to the couch."  
  
Prue was confused, but then she followed Phoebe's gaze towards the couch. There was the book of shadows on the coffee table, and sitting on top of the book was the box—the key, Derek's destruction.  
  
  
  
  
  
As they gently lowered Piper onto the couch Prue flicked her fingers behind her back and the box flew into her hands. However, it would be too hard to open the book to the page with the spell without Derek noticing. Prue waved her finger at a pillow near Piper's head causing it to fall to the floor. She bent down to pick it up.  
  
With her head next to Piper's she whispered, "You have to freeze him so we can get the spell to the box."  
  
Piper nodded but looked down at her hurt arm. She'd have to do it with one arm, and well, if she froze him, it wouldn't be a problem. Piper was just about to lift herself up to freeze Derek when Leo orbed in.  
  
"What do we have here?" Derek asked, forming a bolt of energy in his hand.  
  
"Leo!" Piper screamed.  
  
Leo materialized and turned at the sound of Piper's voice, giving Derek the perfect shot. He released the energy bolt and it slammed into Leo's back, sending him crashing to the base of the couch.  
  
Piper glared at Phoebe. "Up!"  
  
Phoebe lifted Piper up, so she could freeze Derek. Piper thrust her good hand out and froze Derek with a menacing grin on his face. Piper rolled off the couch with Phoebe helping her to stand.  
  
"Where is the damn spell?" Piper asked.  
  
Prue opened the book and started flipping pages until she came to the right one. "We found it in a different book, and after that it appeared in the Book of Shadows." Prue informed her.  
  
"That's fine." Piper muttered. "Where's the box?"  
  
"Prue has it." Phoebe pointed over at her sister.  
  
Prue held her right hand up with the little box in her hand. "Let's hurry up and do this."  
  
Piper snatched the box up. "You two know how to use it don't you?"  
  
Phoebe nodded. "We figured it out."  
  
Phoebe placed her finger in the proper spot on the box as her sisters did the same. Prue moved the book over so they could all see the spell. Piper looked at the book and then at her sisters.  
  
"What language is that?"  
  
"We have no idea, but we better say it fast before demon-boy unfreezes." Prue answered.  
  
They read the foreign spell out loud, repeating it three times – as the book designated. After the third time they looked at the box expectantly. Phoebe opened her mouth to ask why it wasn't working, but at that moment the box shot out of their hands. It hung in thin air just above their heads. Derek unfroze and laughed over what he had done to Leo, not yet noticing the box. The box began to crack open in the center, on half turning to the left, the other half turning to the right. When the halves busted off into dust and the dust fell to the ground, Derek looked up, less than amused.  
  
"What do you think you're doing?" He asked angrily.  
  
He formed another bolt of energy in his hand and flung it at Prue, it ricocheted off of Prue in a flurry of bright light, returning to hit him in the center of the chest. He dropped to his knees and gasped.  
  
"That wasn't very nice." He muttered under his breath.  
  
The remaining part of the box was a small metal ball hovering in the air, bathed in a brilliant golden white light. Suddenly, the light turned a red color tinged with an eerie green light. Beams shot out of the ball, four beams—one shot through Prue's body, one through Piper's body, one through Phoebe's body, and the last through Derek's body.  
  
Derek screamed out in agonizing pain, while Prue, Piper, and Phoebe felt a warming sensation rush through their bodies—the feeling of happiness and love and peace. The beams changed colors as Derek's screams continued to fill the air. The beam through Prue's body changed a light blue, Piper's changed to golden, and Phoebe's to white. Derek's, however, turned dark black. Leo shifted and looked up.  
  
Derek began clawing at his own chest, his hands transformed into talons, and he began stripping flesh away in an attempt to pull the beam of dark light out of his body. He eventually fell to his knees, tearing falling from his eyes in pain, and he toppled over to his side. His screams died down with the brilliance of the beam's light. Soon, all the light coming from the metal ball extinguished, leaving Prue, Piper, and Phoebe watching Derek withering on the ground in pain.  
  
Cole got to his feet and moved to Phoebe's side. He looked down at Derek, obviously having missed the best part of the battle. Derek looked up at the sisters, his face twisted with the fierceness of the pain he felt. "This is not the end." He struggled to say. His head dropped to the ground. His skin started to turn black and finally, his body imploded leaving more dust on the floor.  
  
"What a nice exit." Prue smiled.  
  
Phoebe turned to Leo as she held Piper up. "Leo, come heal Piper. Her arm is hurt."  
  
Leo climbed to his feet and hurried to his wife's side. He placed his hands over her arm and the golden light emitted from his palms. After a few moments, he started to remove her bandage. The skin beneath was as good as new.  
  
"This is a mess that can wait until morning." Prue announced.  
  
"Shall we retire to the kitchen for some tea?" Piper asked. "I'm a bit parched."  
  
"Why of course." Phoebe giggled.  
  
Leo glanced at the dust, then to Cole. Cole shrugged and held his hand out. Leo went before him and followed the girls into the kitchen, Cole followed last. Leo sat across from them and took the cup Prue offered him. Cole sat next to Phoebe with his coffee, he wasn't much in the mood for tea.  
  
"So, Leo, tell us…where have you been?" Prue asked.  
  
"Actually," Phoebe interrupted. "I think I'd much rather hear where Cole and Piper have been."  
  
Prue glanced at Piper and then at Leo. Leo shook his head. "I haven't got much to tell. I had to protect a few innocents, found out a bit new information, and had a chat with the Elders…but you've already vanquished him, so everything is good again."  
  
"In that case, I've got a story for you…" Piper began. "And let me warn you, this story has a bit of a dead end." 


End file.
